


Honeysuckle

by robindrake93



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Alpha Percy Jackson, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Angst, Bittersweet Ending, Consensual Underage Sex, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mostly bitter, Mpreg, Omega Luke Castellan, One Shot, POV First Person, mentions of child death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:46:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25666900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/robindrake93/pseuds/robindrake93
Summary: Percy follows Silena into an alley only to find out that she's meeting with Luke. Then he finds out that Luke isn't a beta like Percy thought. From there, shit pretty much hits the fan.
Relationships: Luke Castellan/Percy Jackson
Comments: 17
Kudos: 134





	Honeysuckle

**Author's Note:**

> So I couldn't help but notice that there are no lukercy ABO fics. What's that all about, AO3? This takes place between Titan's Curse and Battle Of The Labyrinth. 
> 
> If you don't like the font color, click "Hide Creator's Style" at the top and it'll revert to black.
> 
> Do not reupload/repost my fics.

On cloudy days, I liked to go for walks in the city. My city wasn’t perfect but I thought it was beautiful. And when it rained, washing the city clean? Those were my favorite days to be out and about. As I was out and about, I caught the familiar scent of a demigod. In a matter of seconds, I found her. 

I didn’t often see demigods outside of Camp Half-Blood so it was both odd and exciting to see Silena Beauregard on the streets of New York. I was about to call out to her when something stopped me. Silena kind of looked like she didn’t want to be spotted. 

Almost without thinking, I began to follow her. Look, I wasn’t trying to be a creep or anything but Silena looked nervous and I just wanted to make sure she was okay. Demigods have to look out for each other. 

Silena led me a few blocks more until she turned down an alleyway. She stood and waited. Who was she waiting for? 

I got my answer fairly quick. Luke Castellan walked into the alley from the other end. He looked awful even though it had been three months since he held the sky. His hair was pale gray and damp with sweat even though it was only March. His pale skin made the red of his scar stand out even more than usual. The skin around his eyes was pinched like he was in pain. He met Silena in the middle of the alley. 

Neither of them drew weapons. It looked like Luke wasn’t even armed. Where was Backbiter? 

Silena withdrew a six ounce glass bottle from her jacket pocket. It was stopped with a cork and there was a bow tied around the neck. Inside was a shimmering pink liquid that looked sort of like nail polish. 

Whatever was going on here, I didn’t like it and I had to stop it. I stepped into the alley. It smelled strangely good, for being a New York alley, something sweet with a floral undertone that I couldn’t quite place. Maybe honeysuckle. “Silena,” I said, unable to hide the confusion and hurt in my voice. “Why are you meeting with Luke?” 

The two older demigods spun around to face me. 

Silena made a surprised squeak and dropped the bottle. It shattered on the ground, the pink liquid inside it puddling on the concrete. The liquid shimmered among the broken glass and soaked into the ribbon. It was already drying at the edges. 

Luke looked at the broken bottle with an expression full of fear. He gripped Silena by the shoulders and forced her to face him again. “Tell me you have more,” his voice was a rasp. “Please, Silena.” 

I pulled out Riptide, uncapping it and pointing the tip of the blade at Luke’s throat. “Don’t touch her.” I didn’t know what was going on here, but I knew that Luke was a bad guy and I didn’t want his hands on my demigods. 

Silena gave a small shake of her head. “That’s the only batch that’s ready,” she whispered. “The next one won’t be ready till next month.” 

I growled at Luke. 

Luke swallowed. He finally turned his attention to the sword at his throat. His gaze followed the length of my sword back to me and for a moment, it looked like he was considering impaling himself on the end of Riptide. Then the moment passed. Luke released Silena, his hands falling to his sides. “There has to be something else,” Luke prompted Silena. 

Silena shook her head. “It will be okay, Luke,” she tried. 

Luke’s eyes flicked to me then back to her. “I don’t think so.” 

I had no idea what was going on here but it was time to break up this meeting. I took a step toward them. 

Luke took a step backward, bared his teeth, and hissed at me in what was clearly meant to mean: _stay the fuck away from me._

I froze. My eyes went wide as saucers. Two things hit me hard. First, Luke had never _ever_ made that noise at me or anything even remotely like it. He never seemed to mind too much when I was around him, even when I was messing up his evil plans. Second, the sound told me that Luke was an omega. Anyone could hiss like a cat, sure, but it sounded different when coming from an omega. Similar to how growling sounded different coming from an alpha than from a dog. 

“I thought you were a beta,” I blurted out. Not my finest moment. And in the end, it didn’t even matter because no matter what his status was, Luke was evil. 

Silena stepped between us, her back to Luke, her palms up facing me. She trusted him more than me. I could see it in her body language. But why? “Let me walk you home, Percy,” her voice was mostly calm. “We can talk while we walk.”

My gaze slid from Silena to Luke. 

Luke was taking fast, deep breaths in through his mouth and staring at me like I scared him. That was new. I was never a source of fear for Luke. His arms were wrapped around himself, shoulders hunched. He looked like he was in pain. 

Silena shifted so that her body blocked my sight of Luke. “Put your sword away, Percy. I’ll buy you a coke on the way home.” 

I blinked, confused. The mention of coke in Luke’s company made my right palm ache. “What was that you were giving him?” I shifted, trying to keep Luke in my sights. 

Silena shifted with me so that I only caught frustrating glimpses of Luke. “Put your sword away, Percy” she repeated. 

The smell of honeysuckle grew stronger. I couldn’t get it out of my nose but I didn’t want to. It was so much nicer than what New York normally smelled like. I wanted to find the source and bury my face in it. 

“Silena,” Luke groaned. “Get him away from me.” 

Silena took a step toward me. Her posture was non-threatening, her expression neutral. The effect was ruined by her eyes. They were brown today, and they were full of a nameless fear. “Percy, please. Put your sword away.” 

I shook my head, trying to clear it. My sword...what had I been using it for anyway? Silena wasn’t a threat. And Luke… I had to stand on my tiptoes to see around Silena and only caught a glimpse of Luke as he bolted from the alley. Apparently he couldn’t teleport without Backbiter. Then what was he doing in New York? None of this made any sense. 

Silena looked over her shoulder. Her shoulders lowered with relief when she saw that Luke was gone. Some of the anxiety left her eyes. “Percy, c’mon kiddo. I’ll buy you a coke.” 

I blinked and shook my head before focusing on Silena. “I’m not a kid.” Standing in the middle of New York with my sword out was stupid. I put the cap on Riptide and it shrunk back into a pen. The smell of honeysuckle was less now, and the typical New York smells began creeping in. The glittering remains of the bottle caught my attention. “What was in that?”

Silena sighed. She brushed her black hair out of her face. “Percy, if I tell you, then you can’t tell anyone else. No one else knows.” 

I wasn’t going to promise anything. What if she was the one spying at Camp? I stood silently, staring and waiting.

Silena searched my face. She put her hands on my shoulders. The faint smell of honeysuckle rose from them. Was she wearing perfume? And if she was, then why did it make me feel hollowed out and...hungry? “Luke is an omega,” she said softly. “I’ve been brewing him heat suppressants for, oh, years now.”

I stared at her in shock. “You invented a heat suppressant for demigods?” There were no heat suppressants for omega demigods. The ones on the mortal market just didn’t work. Something about our divine blood made the medication ineffective. 

Silena straightened a little, pride in her expression. She should be proud. No one had managed to make a heat suppressant for demigods that didn’t kill the omega. “Daughter of Aphrodite. We’re better with chemistry and biology than some people give us credit for,” she said. “The first few batches…well they made Luke very sick. But he lived so I was doing something right. It took awhile to figure out a recipe that worked and I’ve been making it for him ever since.” 

I stared at the broken glass, the drying liquid. If that was Luke’s heat suppressant… I snapped my gaze up to meet Silena’s. “Is he going into heat _now?_ ” 

The corners of Silena’s mouth tightened. She nodded. Her grip on my shoulders tightened until it hurt. “And _you’re_ going home,” Silena said firmly. 

I let Silena guide me out of the alley. We were headed back the way we’d come. My mind was racing. Every time I inhaled, I caught whiffs of that subtle, sweet scent. All demigods had a unique scent, usually influenced by our godly parent. For example, Silena smelled like melted chocolate and the orange shampoo she used and like the pegasi she spent so much time around. Her heats made her smell subtly like orange blossoms, which I was pretty sure was how she chose her shampoo.

Silena led me into a store, buying me the coke she promised. 

I closed my eyes and brought up my memories of Luke. Before puberty really hit me - before my first rut revealed me as an alpha - my sense of smell was weaker. Not tuned in to the finer details of a person's scent. That was normal for kids...except I was also a demigod. So I didn’t have a super keen sense of smell then, but it was better than a regular mortal. Luke’s hands specifically smelled like leather because of the grip on his sword. The rest of him smelled like clean sweat and warm skin. Almost every time we were together, we wound up sweaty and hot. None of the Hermes kids had a distinct divine smell...Luke always said it was because thieves were supposed to be subtle. 

Honeysuckle was subtle. 

I opened my eyes. 

Silena stood at the counter, paying for our drinks. Her back was to me. 

Almost without thought, I bolted from the store. I ran down the street, back toward the alley, barely avoiding running into pedestrians. My heart pounded in my chest. The alley still smelled like honeysuckle, like Luke. I ran to the other end and turned the way Luke had gone. I could still pick up his trail. 

Overhead, thunder rumbled threateningly. The storm clouds threatened to pour buckets of rain on me. If it rained, I’d never find him unless he was right underneath me. I pushed myself harder, panted through my open mouth. Rain didn’t deter New Yorkers; most of them didn’t take cover from the incoming storm so the streets were still crowded. 

The scent of honeysuckles grew stronger. Either I was getting close or Luke was deeper in his heat. The very idea made me dizzy. What was I doing, running after Luke? His heats weren’t any of my business. 

I didn’t stop running. 

Chiron warned me that my judgement could become clouded around omegas in heat...but I’d always done fine with the ones in Camp. I masturbated a little more when there was an omega in heat nearby and I thought about having pups more but otherwise I was totally fine! It wasn’t like we were animals chained to our nature. That’s what Chiron had told me. He’d also said that I would know when my advances weren’t wanted because omegas would hiss at those they didn’t want around and that I should respect that. 

The clouds burst and rain began to fall. The sidewalk darkened, the sounds of traffic were muffled. 

No. No! 

I had to find Luke. I _had_ to. I breathed in deep through my nose, trying to pick up the scent. It wasn’t hard; it would take a few minutes of heavy rain for the scent to completely fade. Setting off at a brisk walk, I followed the scent of honeysuckle. It led me to a furniture store called CB2. I stood outside, hesitant, unsure if I should follow it inside. My heart raced. I stepped through the doors. 

The smell of honeysuckle hit me like a punch to the gut. I stood on the threshold, trembling and dripping water onto the floor, trying to get a hold on myself. I closed my eyes and tried not to think about how the smell of him filled me with longing, how it made me ache. 

By the time I felt in control of myself and had opened my eyes, I realized something was wrong. No one had come to see what a teenager was doing in their store. I’d only been in furniture stores a handful of times, but every single one of those times a salesperson had come up to greet me and sell me furniture. Where was the staff? What if… I ran deeper into the store. 

My shoes squeaked on the floor. I cast my gaze around, looking for life. There wasn’t a soul in here. Was I walking into a trap? Could you _fake_ the scent of a heat? Then I saw Luke. 

Luke was curled up on one of the display beds. His shoes were gone and he was curled as tightly as he could manage. Above the bed were three huge round mirrors, one of which showed me more of Luke. His arms were hiding his face. Even from a distance I could see him shaking. 

I didn’t want to sneak up on him, but I didn’t want him to hiss at me again. I toed out of my sneakers - hopefully I’d be able to grab them before anyone tried to boot me out of the store - and approached the bed in stocking feet. The area rug beneath the bed only muffled my footsteps even more. I dropped to my hands and knees, crawled around the bed so that we were facing each other…not that he was looking at me. “Where is everyone?” I asked softly. I could taste the sweetness of him on my tongue and clawed at the carpet. 

“Stopped time,” Luke rasped. His voice sounded horrible, like every word hurt him. 

I considered his words. If Luke had stopped time… “I got through okay.”

“Just mortals,” Luke replied. He was still hiding his face with his arms. His whole body trembled. Every breath was loud and harsh. 

I rested my chin on the edge of the mattress, shoulders pressed into it and knees underneath the frame; as close as I could get without being in bed with him. Why did I want to be close to Luke? Was it because of his heat? Was I one of those alphas who wormed into bed with an omega only to leave them once their heat was over? Luke was evil. I couldn’t forgive him for everything he’d done to me. But the idea that I was one of _those_ alphas, a _bad_ alpha, made me sick to my stomach. 

Luke shifted an arm so that he could look at me with one blue eye. “Should have known I couldn’t hide from you.” There was some emphasis on _you_. 

I didn’t know what to say to that so I kept quiet. 

Luke didn’t seem to want to talk anymore either. We were both quiet, watching each other. Then Luke closed his eye. 

Being this close to Luke made me ache. He smelled so good and I _still_ wanted to bury my face into his scent glands and my - NOPE. Not thinking about that. My arms were between my thighs, pressing against my erection. It didn’t help, didn’t ease the pressure at all. I pushed my throat against the mattress, didn’t care that it cut into my windpipe and made it hard to breathe as long as I was closer to Luke. 

Suddenly, Luke grabbed a pillow off the head of the bed and smacked me in the face with it. 

I jerked back, growling in surprise. It’s not like it hurt and I wasn’t under any illusions; if Luke really wanted to hurt me, he could. 

Luke’s arms weren’t covering his face anymore and I got a good look at his eyes. His pupils were dilated so much that I could barely see the blue of his irises. “Are you just going to sit there staring at me?” 

“I…” I hesitated, unsure of what to say. I didn’t want to lie to him, though. We didn’t lie to each other...no matter how much I hated him. “I don’t know.”

Luke’s eyes narrowed. “You must have had some idea...when you followed me here...after I told you to _stay away._ ” He didn’t hiss at me again, but he did lift his lip to show off pointed canines. 

“I came to check on you,” I said, cringing even as the words left my mouth. It sounded like something from a bad romcom. 

Luke must have thought so too, because he snorted. “Stupid alpha.” He rolled onto his back with a groan, knees drawn up and falling apart. 

The action brought a wave of fresh scent to me. I gritted my teeth but it didn’t stop the whine from slipping out. My cock twitched, aching to knot. I pressed the heel of my hand against it. 

“You’re barking up the wrong tree, Percy,” Luke said. He lifted his arm to cover his eyes but not before I saw a tear roll down his face. “I don’t have the energy for breeding.”

The thought of breeding - of producing pups - with Luke should have turned me off but it didn’t. Not even a little. I knew that he was strong and he would take good care of his pups… Not that I wanted pups. I was barely out of puppyhood myself. “ You fought Thalia,” I pointed out. 

“Yeah, because that ended well,” Luke deadpanned. His free hand dug into his ribs like he was in pain. He _was_ in pain...I had just gotten used to the smell of it on him. 

“Can I come up?” I whispered. I wanted to be next to him, to curl up beside Luke and soothe him with my scent and the heat of my body and maybe even...

Luke shifted his arm so he could peer at me with one eye. “You are so goddamn stubborn.” 

I pressed close again, throat digging into the mattress. Luke was hurting from more than just the heat...but I could take care of him. I knew I could, if he would just let me. 

“I’m serious, Percy. I don’t think I could handle breeding. Even from a puppy-alpha like you. I’m too…” Luke didn’t say _weak_ but he didn’t have to. Calling me a puppy-alpha was a nice way of saying that I was young and inexperienced. “And you don’t want me anyway.” 

“What’s wrong with you?” I asked, trying to make the question sound as kind and nonjudgmental as possible. 

Luke closed his eyes again. The hand on his shirt grabbed a fistful and then he was pulling it up, up to his throat so that his torso was exposed. 

I half stood to see better. 

Four thick scars ran from Luke’s right shoulder to his left hip, dipping down past the waistline of his sweats. They were each an inch thick and had the ragged edges of an animal claw. And they looked as red and sore as the scar on his face. Moving had to be agony for him. 

“How -”

“Don’t be naive, Percy. You’ve seen Ladon. You really thought I got away with just one tiny scratch?” He rested his hand on his ribs, lightly even though the skin there wasn’t damaged. “Holding the sky...reopened everything.” 

I didn’t know what to say. I’d never thought about how lucky Luke would have had to be to get away from Ladon with one thin scratch. Even after seeing Ladon in person, I didn’t give it much thought. Luke’s past complaints about his quest, and how pointless everything was, suddenly made sense. I didn’t think an _‘I’m sorry’_ would get me anything other than hissed at again. 

As I stared at his chest, mapping out the scars, I realized that Luke only had one nipple. The other one, the right one, was just gone and replaced by scar tissue. Luke was tall, with broad shoulders, and he was fit. Those would already be considered marks against him - alphas didn’t usually like omegas who were bigger than them - but added to the fact that he could only feed one pup at a time… 

These were details that I noticed mostly in my hindbrain, things the alpha in me noted. But it also noted that a big, strong omega would be hell on anything that tried to mess with their pups and Luke in particular was vicious when it came to fighting. I didn’t want or need someone weaker than me; especially not to make me feel better about myself. Not that I was thinking about actually being mates with Luke. He was evil… Annabeth crossed my mind suddenly; her unwavering commitment to Luke, the way she believed he was a genuinely good person who was just brainwashed. 

I pressed the heels of my hands into my eyes and tried to clear my head. Luke’s pheromones were strong, despite how subtle the scent was. Subtle but it packed a punch. It didn’t matter. None of this mattered because...because Luke said no. He didn’t want to mate, he didn’t even think he could. After watching Luke die, I didn’t really want to hurt him anymore. We were on opposite sides of the war and I didn’t want to hurt him. “Gods,” I whispered. 

“Told you. Alphas don’t like _damaged_ goods,” Luke said with a trace of bitterness in his voice. 

I lowered my hands and growled. “Don’t put words in my mouth!” I snapped. “I'm not so shallow that I care about your having scars. I don’t want to _hurt_ you.” Somehow I had wound up kneeling on the mattress, looming over Luke. 

Luke didn’t move, didn’t even react to my presence in his space. His arm was still draped over his eyes. His legs were still spread and he was so wet with slick that his sweatpants were darkening with it. They had to be uncomfortable anyway because of his reopening scars but add his heat to it… 

“Have you...been with an alpha before?” I asked, trying not to stare and failing at it. 

Luke shook his head once. “Didn’t run into many alphas and Thalia died before she presented…” There was relief in his voice, like he was glad that she’d died before she could claim him. Considering that Thalia had kicked Luke off a cliff, I couldn’t blame him. “Then I went on my quest and, well, no alpha wants a damaged omega.” 

“I don’t mind them,” I said. Had I ever seen anything quite as horrific as the scars stretching across Luke’s torso? No. Was my first thought that it was a weakness? Yes. But that was my first thought and first thoughts are almost always wrong. 

“Find a switch and shut off these lights. They’re hurting my eyes.”

Okay, Luke obviously didn’t want to talk about it. I didn’t want to walk away from him, but he was hurting and this was an easy fix. I had to look around a bit before I found a series of light switches. I turned them all off. Then I walked to the front door and, after examining it for a minute, I figured out how to lock it. When I returned to Luke’s side, I dared to sit on the edge of the bed this time since he hadn’t kicked me out before. 

Luke shifted his arm above his head rather than over his eyes. He looked at me and said, “Good job.”

It was simple praise but I was always a sucker for praise. I couldn’t help but sit up a little straighter. Then I realized what I was doing and slouched again. 

Luke huffed out a laugh. Then he sobered up. “There’s a break room in the back. Get me some water.” 

I was on my feet before it even registered that I was taking orders from Luke. The idea of challenging him crossed my mind for a brief instant; Luke was in heat and hurting. He clearly trusted me not to poison him. I looked at the scar on my right palm as I walked, so I didn’t see the person standing in the break room door until I ran into them. “Oh! Sorry!” I said, looking up. 

They were completely still. Not even breathing. A mannequin? No. They were made of flesh and blood. Luke had stopped time for the mortals…

Goosebumps rose on my skin. Until I saw it, I didn’t really understand. Now that I saw it with my own eyes, it was creepy. Carefully, I edged around the frozen person. There were more in the break room. I swallowed and kept walking, making my way to the fridge in the corner. It took some digging but I found two unopened water bottles in the back. I brought them back to Luke, handing him one and keeping the other for myself. 

Luke sat up and cracked one of the water bottles open. He tipped his head back to drink. 

I kneeled on the bed and watched the way his scars moved when he did. Keeping still wasn’t easy. Distance hadn’t cleared my head at all and I was rock hard in my jeans. 

When Luke had drunk his fill, he set the water on the side table. “Help me with my shirt.” 

My hands shook as I helped him pull the shirt over his head. I was very careful to not touch his skin but I could feel how warm he was from his heat regardless. Without the shirt covering the scent glands, Luke’s pheromones became stronger. I wrapped my hands with Luke’s shirt and buried my face in it, groaning. This could be allowed, right? It wasn’t like I was burying my face in _Luke_. His shirt was saturated with the sweet scent of honeysuckle. My hips jerked up but there was nothing to grind on, no omega to thrust into. 

Luke’s eyes were narrowed to slits, his face flushed and his lips parted. His pulse beat fast in the hollow of his throat. 

I wanted to kiss him. His scent filled my lungs and made my blood hot. “Luke,” I said helplessly. “Why am I like this with you? The omegas at Camp never get to me like this.” 

Luke sighed and closed his eyes. His hands were above his head, knuckles white as he gripped the pillows at the head of the bed. He shifted his hips, moaning softly. Luke opened his eyes. “I don’t know if I can get pregnant.”

My eyes flicked down the scars. How deep did they run? 

“Chiron put everything back and sewed me up but...he didn’t know and I’ve never tried,” Luke said, still studying my face. 

“Okay,” I said. As a _puppy-alpha,_ I wasn’t overly interested in parenthood right now. I had my whole life ahead of me - probably, maybe - to have pups. And heat sex didn’t mean there had to be pups. A lot of couples enjoyed heat sex because it was a mutual and intimate loss of control that resulted in mind-blowing pleasure. 

“But if I do get pregnant…you’ll have to raise our pup, Percy,” Luke’s voice cracked. 

His words made something in me go cold. I inched closer, not too close, not touching, but I wanted to be closer to him. “Why?”

“My master will…” Luke hesitated. He brought his hand down and gestured to the angry red scars on his torso. “I’m being punished right now. He...punishes me a lot. He has…” Luke shook his head. “He’ll use our pup against me, and even if I do what he wants, he might hurt them anyway.”

Rage welled up so fast and fiercely that I literally saw red. My lip curled up and I growled, a real alpha growl. Just the thought of Kronos using a pup against Luke, of hurting Luke and the pup that way, made me so angry that I wanted to fight Kronos right then. It wasn’t even real, though. It was hypothetical. Luke didn’t even know if he could get pregnant and I hadn’t knotted him. It took a few long minutes to calm down enough that my growl turned almost inaudible. 

“Percy?” Luke prompted. 

I met his eyes and nodded. “Okay.” Luke was strong, and I could admit it, but he wasn’t strong enough to fend off a Titan. 

Luke pushed his sweatpants down an inch. “Help me get these off.” 

I did and there was no way to do it without touching him. My nails lightly trailed down the length of his legs. My movements were jerky as I pulled the sweats off Luke...I almost wanted to bury my face in them like I had with his shirt but _oh gods he was right there_ and I’d rather my face be between his thighs. 

I panted through my open mouth. I could taste him on my tongue, scent a little burst of sweetness. His cock was erect and flushed with arousal. And at the base was a big knot of scar tissue, parallel with the claw marks, which meant Luke almost lost a lot more than one nipple. “Luke, does this mean -“

“Just be _gentle_ , Percy,” Luke said as he reached for me. 

I’ve never gotten out of my clothes so fast. As eager as I was - and I was so hard that it hurt - I was careful about positioning myself between Luke’s legs. Restraining myself and wanting Luke and nerves all made my body tremble. 

“Your scents’ been driving me crazy,” Luke muttered. He reached between us and grasped my cock. 

I whined. Precum dripped from the head as my cock twitched. 

Luke stroked me gently, almost like I was the one who needed to be coddled. With his other hand, he grabbed a pillow and slid it beneath his butt. The action made his scars stretch. A brief flicker of pain flitted across his features before he masked it. Luke guided my cock to his entrance. “Look how wet I am for you,” he said. 

He was wet, wonderfully slick. I slid into him as gently as I could, shaking with the effort of restraining myself. Luke was soft on the inside. I don’t know why but it didn’t previously occur to me that the texture would be soft. And he was warm, almost hot. The walls of his body were snug around me. I loved the feeling. I wanted to move, to pound into him, but I forced myself to stay still. I was a good alpha.

Luke’s eyes were downcast, staring at the place we were now connected. He took controlled, deliberate breaths. His eyes caught mine. “Gentle,” he warned me. For the first time, I noticed that his claws were out and the tips had punctured the comforter we lay on. 

I didn’t want to get scratched. A scratch would likely scar and if Luke was scratching me it probably wouldn’t be in ecstasy. Keeping my movements slow and gentle wasn’t easy. I wasn’t even properly thrusting, just rocking. 

Luke stayed as still as he could beneath me. Every time his hips twitched up, he winced and hissed in pain. 

“Am I hurting you?” I asked after the fourth time this happened because knotting be damned, I couldn’t handle hurting him while we mated. 

Luke shook his head. “It’s not you. It’s,” another gesture to his reopening scars. He closed his eyes and laughed humorlessly. “You feel good. I wish you could breed me proper.” 

Proper for heat sex meant out of control going to town. It meant hard and fast and fucking your way across the mattress. Because heat sex was about the animalistic sex, yeah, but the goal was to knot as quickly as possible so you could do it a couple dozen times during the length of the omega’s heat. In other words, the exact opposite of what we were doing. 

We would get to the knotting part - so long as Luke didn’t need me to stop - but it would be a slow buildup. 

When Luke opened his eyes, I could see in his expression that he regretted my first mate being _damaged_. The stigma around what made a good omega - especially in the demigod world - was extremely specific. Luke broke out of all stereotype boxes and he hadn’t had a choice about any of it. 

I carefully dropped down to my elbows so that our faces were only inches apart. I kept our bodies apart too, so that I didn’t rub against his scars even though I wanted to feel Luke’s skin against mine. The new position was easier to control how hard I rocked into him. “Just wait until I knot you,” I whispered in the space between our lips. 

Luke lifted his head and rubbed his left cheek against mine. 

I nuzzled him back, then shifted so that I could rub the scent glands in our necks together; so that we would smell like _Luke &Percy_. That in and of itself made a bolt of pleasure shoot through me. Scent glands were sensitive and they were where you sank your teeth when you wanted to Claim your Mate. Even rubbing ours together made pleasurable goosebumps break out across my skin. The scents of honeysuckle and saltwater rose in the air. 

Luke moaned low in his throat. Maybe he couldn’t rock his hips up to meet my thrusts, but this was something he could participate in, rubbing against me, rubbing his scent into my skin where everyone would be able to smell him for weeks. 

With my face in his neck, breathing in his skin and scent directly from the source, I no longer felt that empty hunger clawing at me from the inside. Luke’s scent was filling me up. My stomach brushed against Luke’s cock. 

Luke hissed in pain. 

“I’m sorry,” I said, carefully making sure I wasn’t touching him there anymore. 

“Don’t be.” Luke’s nails sank into my back and his legs wrapped around my waist, anchoring me. The effort made his face screw up in pain. “I only get to do this once, Percy.” 

_But you’re only twenty-one,_ I wanted to protest. I couldn’t, though. Luke was young by mortal standards but by demigod standards he was an old man. Making it to his eighteenth birthday had been a miracle and every year lived after that was stolen and fought for and could be the last. I didn’t ask why Luke thought that this was the only time he’d mate. I didn’t really want to know. “Okay,” I agreed. “I’m not sorry. But you don’t need to hurt yourself. I’m not going anywhere.” 

Luke gave a disbelieving snort but he slowly put his feet back on the bed. His right arm followed. But he kept his left hand threaded through my hair. “You’re doing so good,” Luke whispered. “You’re going to make someone a good Mate one day.”

I didn’t know what to say to that - and I couldn’t explain why it made my heart hurt - so I kissed Luke. The pressure alternated with every forward and back motion of my hips. 

Luke kissed me back, lips moving against mine. He slid his tongue against my bottom lip.

I parted my lips and slid my tongue against his. With my tongue in his mouth, I learned two things. Luke tasted like blood. And his facial scar went all the way through. When he whined, I pulled my tongue back into my own mouth. 

Luke may not have wanted my tongue in his mouth, but he had no problems with sliding his into mine. He rubbed his tongue against mine almost lazily and slowly he began to taste more like me and less like blood. 

Having a small piece of Luke inside of me while I was inside of him was thrilling. This was nothing like I imagined my first mating to be like, but I loved it all the same. I loved how Luke felt around my cock, how the slow friction built and built and felt like it would never end. Now that we were so close, I could feel the vibrations of Luke’s almost inaudible moans. The sound/feel of those reassured me more than anything that I was doing good and I wasn’t the only one getting something out of this. 

Luke trailed his wrist over my hair and my back, scent marking me. He broke our kiss just to press his lips against the scent glands on my neck. His tongue was wet and warm against them. Luke bit me there, careful not to break the skin. 

Pleasure washed over me from my head to my dick. I shivered and closed my eyes. My balls drew tight and the base of my cock began to swell. I rocked into Luke until my knot got too big and then I settled snug inside of him. We were tied together for the next forty-five minutes. With reluctance, I pulled away from Luke’s teeth so that I could situate us into something comfortable for the long haul. 

Luke whimpered when I moved his leg over my head and rolled him onto his side so that I could lay behind him. His cock was still red and hard but he hadn’t cum yet. 

I didn’t want to touch him in case it hurt - and I was pretty sure that with the scar tissue, jacking him off would hurt him - so I ground into him, made small circles with my hips. 

Luke moaned, the first audible one he’d made. He pressed his back against my chest, hands digging into the mattress for as much leverage as he could get. 

I couldn’t wrap my arms around Luke, I realized unhappily. Instead, I settled for sliding one hand down his muscled back, not stopping till my hand was between his legs. He was - we were - hot down there. My fingers touched his rim, stretched by my cock and swollen with his heat. Gently, I traced it, this place where our bodies met. My cock twitched inside of him, filling him with my cum, making pups. The realization made my head spin. I pressed my lips to the scent gland on his neck; breathing him in, tasting him. “I want to keep you,” I mouthed against Luke’s skin. 

Luke moaned again. He shook and shivered but it didn’t seem to be with pain this time. One hand came to wrap loosely around the head of his cock, not stroking, just holding it. “Me too,” he admitted so softly I thought I imagined it. 

Luke didn’t have scars on his back so I could press as close to him as I wanted, his skin against mine. His heart pounded hard and this time I could feel it, could feel my heartbeat matching his until I couldn’t tell the difference between them. I eased my hand over his waist, careful to avoid his scars, and gently moved his fingers away from his cock. I wasn’t going to jack him off in the traditional sense but Luke was my omega and I wanted to make him feel good. 

“Percy,” Luke whined when I moved his hand. He didn’t put up much of a fight, still shivering on my knot. 

I scraped my teeth against his neck. “I’ll take care of you,” I said because that’s why I’d followed Luke. To take care of him. I held his cock gingerly, and circled the head with my thumb. 

Luke tipped his head back and moaned. He shook like someone had set him on vibrate. Precum oozed from the head, wetting my fingers, and Luke clenched around my knot. 

I ran my finger against the slit, collecting precum, and slid down to the glands on the underside of the head, circling there too. “Good?” I murmured, not really needing an answer but wanting one all the same. 

“So good,” Luke assured me. His claws tore the bedspread in an effort to keep from thrusting into my hand. He came about a minute later, spilling out over my hand and briefly tightening around my knot so much that I saw stars. Luke’s insides throbbed in time to our hearts beating. 

Just when I thought I’d reached peak pleasure, there was more. No wonder mates and heat sex was hyped up so much. I nuzzled the fine hairs at the back of Luke’s neck as I rubbed his cum into my thigh. More scent, more proof of _Luke &Percy._ Luke lay on his left side so I could put my hand on his rib cage, the closest I could get to holding him. 

Luke went boneless, then, body relaxing and finally the shaking stopped. He placed his hand over mine, slotting his fingers between mine. Then he started to purr. 

Luke’s heat lasted twenty-four hours. It was shorter than it should have been, which might have been because of the stress his body was under or because he hadn’t had a heat since he was sixteen. 

I took care of him; getting food from the break room and water and helping him to the bathroom. 

And of course, I took care of the fever of lust his heat brought, bringing him to orgasm over and over again. Luke let me lick his cock until he came in my mouth, after which I kissed him. And he let me eat him out, which made him so wet that I was pretty sure the staff would have to burn this bed because there was no way our scents were coming out of it. Luke didn’t mind my teeth in his thighs - not a Mating Bite of course - but I left dark hickies on his skin. I wanted this to be as good as possible for both of us. 

I fell in love with Luke. Well, not really. My old love for Luke was rekindled. Luke was sarcastic and fatalistic but he was also patient and sweet. Like he’d been when I first went to Camp. Every time I fell a little harder, I cursed everyone who had a hand in us fighting on opposite sides in the war. 

Near the end of his heat, Luke sat propped up against pillows with his cheek resting against my head and his hand laced with mine. “I’ll let you know as soon as I find out,” Luke said tiredly. “I’ll contact Silena.” 

It took me a moment to realize what he was talking about. I squeezed his hand. “Okay. Will you tell me either way?” 

Luke nodded. 

How soon would he find out? My mom… My eyes widened. “My mom’s pregnancy went really fast. She gave birth to me two months after conception.” 

“Dear gods,” Luke muttered. 

“Yeah,” I agreed. “He probably had something to do with it.” I had no clue if that meant my children would develop abnormally fast or if Luke would have a normal pregnancy…

Luke fell asleep sitting up. His grip on my hand loosened. 

How soon would Luke know? I was by no means a pregnancy expert but everyone knew that the heart started beating at ten days. Something occurred to me. If his pregnancy went fast, would I know now? Carefully, slowly, I pulled away from him. I leaned over him, ear as close as I dared to his stomach. I closed my eyes and focused, trying to listen for a heartbeat. I heard my own heartbeat...it took a minute to pick out Luke’s. My ears strained to hear more. It would be easier if I could put my ear against his skin but I didn’t want to hurt Luke. 

"Any luck?” Luke asked, voice tired. 

I looked up at him guiltily, and shook my head. 

Luke cupped my face and pulled me up for a kiss. His skin was finally cool, the last bit of his heat leaving. After our kiss, he pressed our foreheads together. “My good puppy-alpha,” Luke murmured. 

The mood had shifted. Now that he wasn’t in heat, Luke would be leaving soon. I’d known we were on borrowed time but I didn’t want it to come to an end. I whined, low in my throat, expressing my unhappiness. 

“I know,” Luke said, voice soothing. “But listen, you’re...you’re going to live for a long time. And you’re going to raise our pup and keep them safe. And you’re going to find a good mate to help you...and love you.” 

I swallowed. My throat felt tight. “Where will you be?” 

Luke sighed. “Percy, you’ve got to know that I’m not going to make it out of this war alive.” 

“You don’t know that,” I started.

Luke cut me off, “Yes, I do. I’ve known for a while now.” 

“That isn’t fair,” I protested. I didn’t care that I sounded like a child. I hated Luke less than I used to and I didn’t want him dead anymore. 

“We can’t fight Fate.” 

Maybe not, but I wanted to. 

Luke kissed me. “It’s time for you to go home, Percy. I’ll clean up here. Don’t follow me this time, alright? Swear you won’t follow me.” 

I gave Luke one last long, lingering kiss. “Tell me. Either way. I’ll...I’ll see you around, Luke.” I got up and put my clothes back on. My heart told me to stay. It felt wrong to abandon Luke...and our pup. The past twenty-four hours had changed my life forever. 

But Luke wanted me to leave. So I left. 

It wasn’t raining anymore. Life had gone on around us. No one noticed or cared about a closed furniture store or what happened within it. No one cared that Luke thought he was going to die or that my heart was broken. 

When I got home to my mom’s apartment, mom rushed to the door and said “Percy! Where have you -“ She froze when she smelled me. There was really no way to hide the scent of a mating. I could take a hundred showers and not wash it off. “Honey, what happened?”

I stepped into her arms and closed my eyes. The walk home had given me time to think. “I think I met my Mate.” There were mates, people you had sex with, and Mates, people you were destined to love and be with for the rest of your life. 

Mom hugged me. She smelled warm and familiar, a pleasantly neutral beta scent. “Your Mate? Where are they?” 

“Leaving,” I whispered. “He’s on the Titan’s side, mom. And he says he’s Fated to die soon.” Tears rolled down my cheeks. Saying it out loud was hard. So hard. Words spoken aloud held power and now both Luke and I had said them. “You might be a grandma.” 

Mom held me close like when I was a pup. “Oh, Percy. I’m so sorry, sweetheart.” 

Two weeks later, Silena showed up at mom’s apartment with two glass bottles of coke in her hands. “It’s aesthetically pleasing,” Silena defended herself without prompting. 

I took mine and twisted the cap off with my bare hands. I didn’t notice the pain as it’s edges cut into my palm. There were a lot of things I could have said; customary greetings or inquiring after her health or following up on if she was the spy or inviting her in or thanking her for the drink or asking about Luke. I could have said anything but instead I said nothing. Lately I didn’t feel like talking. Instead of speaking I stood aside and let her in. 

Silena followed me through the apartment to the fire escape. She gave the moonlace a curious look but didn’t comment on it. We sat side by side on the windowsill. “You’re going to be a father,” Silena said and took a sip of her coke. 

I hadn’t touched mine beyond opening it. My heart squeezed painfully in my chest. I stared past the grates of the fire escape into the alley below. 

“Luke said he’ll find a way to get the pup to you,” Silena continued. 

It occurred to me, not for the first time, that I had no idea how I was going to raise a pup and fight a war. Yes, they would be better off with me than on the Titan side, but the Gods weren’t done with me. The future looked bleak. 

“No one else knows. I haven’t told anyone and I won’t.” Silena peeled the plastic wrapper off her bottle. “Are you okay, Percy?”

“I’m only fourteen,” I said. My voice sounded almost as raspy as Luke’s had. “How am I going to do this? I can’t even feed them.” 

“Percy, honey, we’ll help you at Camp. And I’m sure your mom will too…” Silena slid an arm around me. 

I leaned against her, seeking comfort in a friend. “What if they hate us, Silena? Because Luke is on the Titan’s side?”

Silena was quiet for a few moments. “No one is going to hold a pup’s parents against them.” 

“They hold my parentage against me.” I was never allowed to forget my parentage. Poseidon was my sire and that was the only thing anyone cared about at Camp. Blood mattered. 

“Legacies are different, honey. Besides, Poseidon and Hermes both like you. No one will want to tangle with those two.” 

My gut twisted at the thought of what Hermes was going to do to me. I got his omega son pregnant and _didn’t_ Claim him. Only because Luke hadn’t wanted me to. _Because he thinks he’s going to die._ “Thanks for telling me,” I said because everything else got twisted up inside of me. 

Three months from the day I spent with Luke, my first night back at Camp Half-Blood. I sat alone at the Poseidon table, picking at my dinner, feeling anxious. Neither Silena nor I had told anyone about my pending fatherhood. I hoped the pregnancy was easy on Luke… That wasn’t something I’d thought of when I agreed to his terms. The pregnancy probably wouldn’t be easy on him, especially not if it was super accelerated. 

Hermes came in on the wind. He stood before me, expression more grim than I had ever seen it. In his hands was a blue box. “Delivery for Perseus Jackson.” I’d never heard his voice sound so cold.

Slowly, I stood up and took the box. It weighed at once more and less than I thought it should. Carefully, I set the box on the table and opened it. It wasn’t taped shut. Inside, nestled among some blankets, was a small bundle. Tears sprang to my eyes and the noise I made was small and hurt. I’ve never held a baby before, but I scooped the pup into my arms and held them close to my chest. It was instinctive.

They smelled like me and Luke and something else. Fresh puppy smell. Their hair was wet. 

Carefully I wiped their hair clean with a corner of the blanket. I looked up at Hermes. “Is...is he okay?” 

“He’s alive,” Hermes replied coolly. “I can’t say this was what I was expecting when he asked me to deliver something for him an hour ago.” 

The pup cried for food. They were hungry. I wasn’t prepared for this. I wasn’t - I couldn’t do this - I didn’t even have food on me - 

Hermes handed me a bottle filled with white liquid. “Cradle them in your arm like a football and support their head.” 

I did what he said. It was hard to juggle a baby and a bottle but I managed without dropping or hurting either. Then I pressed the rubber nipple against the pup’s lips. I wished Luke was here. I wished we were with Luke. We should be together. “Thank you,” I whispered. 

“Hermes, what is that you’ve brought to my Camp?” Dionysus asked. 

My blood went cold. I held the pup a little closer, angling my body away as though I could hide the pup from the god.

Hermes faced Dionysus. His face looked like it was carved from marble but there was fire in his eyes. “My grandchild.”

Dionysus looked bored. He hummed. “I thought so.” 

Chiron stood and walked to us. It was so quiet that I could hear his every hoofstep. He stopped a few feet away, peering at me and my pup. His nostrils flared as he took in our scents. Understanding crossed his features. “Ah, I see. Percy, come along to the Big House and we’ll get you and your pup taken care of.”

There was a gasp from the surrounding Campers. They’d had no idea and I was so young. _Puppy-alpha._

I sighed with relief. “Okay, Chiron.” Then I glanced at Hermes. “Can you give him a message?” 

For a moment, it looked like Hermes would deny me. Then he gave a curt nod. 

“Tell him that I figured out why...and...to wait for me.” I nuzzled my pup’s head. “I’ve got to raise our pup...but after that...I’ll see him again.” 

Hermes' expression softened. He put a hand on my shoulder. He lowered his voice. “I am _furious_ that Luke had to go through giving birth alone and in secret. It was twins, you know. The other pup was stillborn. Luke would not be parted from it.” A look of concern flashed across Hermes’ face. He shook his head. “Make no mistake, Percy. I’m glad that you were his Mate. I like you. And I’ll help you as much as I’m allowed. Take good care of my grandchild, Percy.”

I felt like I’d been punched in the chest. I couldn’t breathe. Twins? One of them lost? And Luke - my omega, my Mate, my heart - was alone and in pain and suffering by himself. He didn’t even get to hold our living pup for more than a moment; because I’d figured out what a wet pup meant, it meant that they had been born and then brought straight to me. 

Arms came around me and I smelled warm chocolate, oranges, and horse musk. Silena kept me from dropping to my knees. “Oh, honey, I’m so sorry. But this isn’t the place. Let’s take your pup inside, Percy. We need to take care of them first. Chiron will make sure they’re healthy. Then you can grieve, okay?” 

I nodded. Numbness spread through me. I moved on autopilot, looking at my nursing pup and wishing that Luke was here. That we could grieve together. 

Silena made sure that I didn’t trip on my way to the Big House. 

By the time we got there, Chiron was ready to examine my pup. 

It took some coaxing before I was willing to let them go. And then I hovered the whole time, growling whenever my pup whimpered or cried. 

Chiron’s examination was probably fast but I was wound up tight and wanted my pup back in my arms, so it felt like it took forever. “They’re a healthy pup, Percy. Congratulations.” He handed me back my pup. “Would you like to sleep in the Big House tonight? I’ll be within shouting distance if you need help with anything.”

I hesitated, then nodded. I needed all the help I could get. “I have to tell my mom.” 

Chiron produced two golden drachmas and placed them in my hand. “The room upstairs and to the left should be ready for guests. You can call her there.” He turned to Silena. “Ms. Beauregard, would you be willing to make a run to the store and pick up some essentials?” 

“There’s no need,” Hermes said. I didn’t even notice him following us in. He handed a diaper bag to Silena. “I’ve already picked up the essentials. You’ll need more but it’s enough to get you through the next day.” 

I didn’t say thank you. Instead, I turned toward the stairs. It was easy to find the bedroom Chiron spoke of. There was a stained glass rainbow hanging from the window...I couldn’t unhook it without setting my pup down. Very carefully, I set the now-sleeping pup down and arranged the pillows so that they blocked the pup in. No rolling off the bed for this one. Quickly, I unhooked the decoration and held it in front of the lamp to create a small rainbow. 

There were two golden drachmas in my hand. I called mom first and told her everything I knew. 

She wanted to drive down right away but I reminded her that she couldn’t get through the boundary. “Have Silena drive you two up when you go shopping, Percy. I want to meet my grandchild...and I think you need a hug.”

“Yeah,” I said, voice breaking. “I do.” I promised to see her as soon as possible. 

Then I called Luke. The rainbow was so small that I could barely see him. And it was dark where he was, lit by strange green fire. Luke lay curled on his side, body wrapped around a bundle I couldn’t quite make out. I didn’t try very hard. His hair was plastered to his forehead and his eyes were glassy. 

“Luke,” I whispered. 

He didn’t react for a few moments. Then his eyes flicked to me. He opened his mouth but no words came out. 

I shifted and picked up our sleeping pup, bringing them into view, and bouncing them back to sleep as they fussed. 

Luke visibly perked up at the sound, only to groan and lay his head back down. A wet spot formed on the chest area of his shirt. Not blood. Milk? He curled more protectively around the bundle at his side. 

Seeing him in even more pain, even more broken than before, took the words from my mouth. I didn’t know what to say. Everything I thought of sounded cheap and mocking. I didn’t want to kick Luke while he was down. 

“You don’t have to cry, puppy-alpha,” Luke’s voice was barely audible. It sounded like he’d been screaming for hours. “I knew it would be this way...when I agreed to mating with you.” Even a few words had him out of breath.

I didn’t realize I was crying until he said something. I didn’t bother to wipe my tears away. 

“At least I did one good thing before I die.” 

“Are you dying? Where are you? I’ll come get you.” My voice suddenly came back to me. I should have insisted that he stay with me, that he come back to Camp with me. We could have run away. We could have - 

“Not yet,” Luke said but didn’t sound sure. “You stay there, where my master can’t reach either of you.” He sighed and closed his eyes. For a heart wrenching moment, I thought he’d died. Then Luke drew a tired breath. “My master is planning to use my body as a stepping stone. It’s going to kill me. I can’t stop him.” 

I couldn’t breathe again. My head felt light as though all the blood had rushed out of it. “Can’t I do something?”

“Take care of our pup.” He pressed his lips to the top of the bundle he held. Tears rolled down his cheeks. “I’m going to tell my master that there was only this one… so...so keep...keep our pup safe, Percy. Swear it to me.” 

“I swear I’ll keep them safe,” I said. 

“And Percy...it isn’t just us demigods that the Olympians like to fuck over. They’ll go after legacies too.” 

“I’ll keep them safe,” I repeated. If one of the gods wanted my pup...there would be nothing I could do about it. For the first time I knew how helpless my mom had felt. 

“I’ve gotta go,” Luke whispered. “Bye, puppy.”

“Bye, Luke,” I whispered back. The connection dissolved. I turned the lamp off and laid with my pup curled against my side. There was a pillow on their other side in the place of Luke. It should have been all three of us together. I held their tiny hand and kissed their teeny little fingers. “I couldn’t save Luke...but I swear that I’ll kill anyone who tries to hurt you,” I promised. 

In the dark, holding a pup still wet from birth, and knowing that my Mate was slowly dying as he lay curled around the body of our dead pup, the promise sounded binding.

**Author's Note:**

> The pup doesn't have a name or a gender because I didn't want to choose either way. The box is blue because Percy is the son of the Sea God.


End file.
